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makapatag · 5 months

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i must preface this post by saying i am on the side of the activists and of radical leftists in the philippines, but there is too much rhetoric being espoused (mostly by manilenyos and other folk from metropoles) that has the effect of diminishing and perhaps even dehumanizing those from outside the center. they have cultures themselves that are often either unrecognized by the filipino or commodified

to feed into a filipino identity is to reinforce colonialist imposition. no matter how much you try to reform and make filipino your own, it will always be a tool for oppression for others. in the same way you cannot reform capitalism into something good

the filipino was made by the spanish to refer to other spaniards that were from the philippines. with the philippine revolution (itself mostly a transferral of power to america), the filipino has been claimed by the indios, and with it we participated in global capitalism

it is not fruitful to deny the truth of historical materialism: the philippines as a state is an american project, built upon the bones of quezon. to this day we are a neocolonial entity. what then? there is a better world beyond the filipino. those in manila would not know: manilenyo marxists and communists would be blinded even more by dogma.

if you have never experienced or lived through the lives of those in cebu, or davao, etc., you will not understand the violence of them understanding manilenyos when you talk tagalog but you not understand them when they speak in their own language.

the violence of filipino imposition, saying "this or that is filipino identity!"' when it is something pretty unique to the metropolis of manila. not every province has jeepneys (and i will say that I am of course on the side of the jeepney drivers and #NoToJeepneyPhaseout, just in case more leftists misconstrue my words as they are wont to do in this era of twitter discourse dominated by youth burgeoning from american educational systems), not every province has jollibees, or karatulas, or flower shops. in the same sense, the filipino colonial project looks to other places in the philippines and then immediately reduces them to their main export: cebu has lechon, iloilo has kansi, etc. this is a violence those that live in these places know too well. it hasn't changed.

is it ever surprising then that cebu wanted to leave the philippines back in the 50s? imagine this: in the event that we all had our way after spanish colonialism, we probably would've split. witness the shared cultures of china--they have different bespoke cultures but they are of the same country.

at the end of it all, this is still a criticism of nationalism and nation states. this is not a filipino problem, but a global capitalism problem. witness how even marx knew that nationalism was temporary and said that it was a manifestation of self-alienation. to become a nation is to be part of global capitalism's game, to be easily exploitable, to force yourself to conform to the definitions of the empire

#thoughts #on the philippines #because a lot of tibaks have a very rudimentary #dialectics and even marxism which they purport to be #its increasingly clear to me that activism in the philippines is becoming more and more of a means of releasing guilt #by the petty boojwazi #and they think following the leader is enough #instead of interrogating the actual structures of capitalism #and even interrogating and questioning the foundations of their own knowledge #but that's all right that's not exactly their job #their job is to resist and keep the fight up

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thesubtleartofenglish · 3 months

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Harnessing the Power of English Proficiency: A Disaster or Blessing for Filipino Workers?

It started with the money, which was one of the most influential things that all of the people wanted to have. Having a good, decent, and high-paying job has been a dream come true for most people. It will sound hypocritical if someone tells you that happiness is the only thing that matters to them. But in reality, what matters most is the money that results in a convenient and stress-free life. Unfortunately, living in a country where high-paying jobs don't exist, where many people are still dependent and forcing themselves into low-income jobs, and where capitalism has ruled the job industry, the Filipinos have been having a very hard time trying to find a perfect job that doesn't only suit the profit they want but also the capabilities and abilities they have.

"Why are Filipinos often accepted for call center jobs?" If someone asks this question, it will be triggering for many Filipinos. A lot of the so-called-proud Filipinos will defend how their Kababayans have been very fluent and talented in speaking English. They will give you links that will direct you to different articles and videos and will show how ignorant you are for not knowing how many Filipinos have been accepted into English-speaking jobs. Precisely, Filipinos are known for being good speakers of English because they were colonised by the Americans. Their influence played a significant role in shaping the English proficiency level of Filipinos. Mostly of schools and educational materials in the Philippines were predominantly in English. This exposure to the language from an early age allowed Filipinos to develop a solid foundation in English. Furthermore, the American occupation brought with it a cultural exchange between the United States and the Philippines. This exchange allowed for the assimilation of American customs, traditions, and language. English became a means of communication between American military personnel and the local population, leading to increased familiarity and usage of the language. And because Filipinos also like to support western movies, singers, and even books, most of them are actually fluent and can speak with foreign people easily and clearly using the said language.

Almost half of the population in the Philippines are competent with the English language. The last poll that was conducted by Social Weather Stations survey was on March 26 to 2029, 2023. It shows that 47% of Filipinos have the ability to think in English, 80% of them understand the language, while 55% can speak the language. Around only 9% do not apply any of these skills. According to Nakahara's research, over 80% of the 102 Filipino respondents used English mostly in their work fields, such as meetings, conversations with colleagues, emails to colleagues, company documents, negotiations with business partners, emails to business partners, and documents for business partners. A lot of Filipinos are unemployed due to not being able to speak English, this also affects the economic growth of the Philippines. There's a quote that says, "English is like, if you speak it, then you can get a job in any country," but does it also apply to those unfortunate people inside their own country? The unemployment rate in the Philippines is influenced by these main factors, such as education background, skills, and English proficiency. Unfortunately, for many Filipinos, the language barrier becomes a hindrance to having a job. They might be talented professionals with basic English knowledge, but despite their outstanding qualifications, the employer may still choose not to hire them due to their inadequate English proficiency.

Gerry Rose F. Legaspi, 32, was one of the Filipinos who shared this concern. As someone who started working at an early age, it's understandable that she'd be rejected because of her educational background. She only finished high school and began working afterward to support her first child. She confesses that it is quite difficult because she has previously worked two to three jobs in one day. “Mahirap kasi nagbabantay ako sa karinderya ng biyenan ko sa umaga, tapos sa tanghali naman pagkatapos mag-tanghalian, tutulong sa paggawa ng mga bracelet beads, tapos sa gabi ay janitress (It's hard because in the morning, I work at a cafeteria that was owned by my mother-in-law, then after I eat lunch, I will help with bracelet beads, and at night, I will work as a janitress.)” But when she got the opportunity to enroll in a technical vocational course at Xavier Technical Training Center with a diploma in Computer Science, she worked hard to study and graduated as one of the outstanding enrollees of the batch. “Ginalingan ko talaga nung nag-enroll ako ron, hindi lang kasi puro kompyuter `yung tinuturo samin, may isa kaming subject na nag-eenglish kami at ang weird dahil iyon ang mas nagustuhan ko (I did my best when I got enrolled there, however, we didn`t only learn how to use computers, we also had one subject where we learned how to speak English. It's weird, but I did enjoy that one the most.)

She began looking for work after graduating, using Facebook. She tried scrolling through many job groups and asked them about their requirements; fortunately, one employer from a call center job contacted her. “Pagpunta ko `ron sa site kung saan i-interviewhin ako, nakita ko na ang daming aplikante na naka-formal attire, samnatalang ako `yung damit ko lang ay polo-shirt na puti at pantalon na fitted, naka-rubber shoes pa nga ako, pero sila ang tataas ng heels, naka-gel ang buhok, `yung sapatos halata mong kakalagay lang ng shoe polish, basta halata mong mga professionals. (When I arrived at the site where I would be interviewed, I noticed that many of the other applicants were dressed formally, whereas I was dressed casually in a white polo shirt, fitting jeans, and rubber shoes. They are dressed professionally, with high heels, gelled hair, and their shoes are obviously fresh from shoe polishing.) The interview has not yet started, but she felt intimidated and insecure. When the employer started to call their names, she felt something she had never felt before; her stomach turned, and the butterflies started dancing. When it was her turn, she was first asked by the employer if she could speak English. “Tinanong niya ako kung marunong ba ako mag-english, ang sagot ko naman ay “A little bit, Ma`am” tapos parang natatawa siya tapos tumingin ulit sa resume ko, naiilang na ako at parang napapahiya tapos maya-maya sabi niya na “we can`t accept someone like you because we think you are not ready for this” (The employer asked me if I could speak English. I answered her, "A little bit, ma'am." Then she looked like she was actually laughing, and she looked again at my resume. I felt uncomfortable and shy, and later on she told me, “We can`t accept someone like you because we think you are not ready for this.”)

After being rejected from the job she was supposed to earn, she experienced low confidence because someone rejected her due to her basic skills in English. “Masakit syempre, sa totoo lang proud nga ako nun` kase may tinapos ako kahit tech-voc lang pero marami kase ang magagaling doon, damit pa nga lang nila walang-wala na ako, pero siguro kung isa ako sakanila, pipiliin din nila ako. (It is truly hurting me. To be honest, I'm very proud that time because I studied, even though it was simply a technical vocational course, but all of the prospective employees there are far superior. Their attires is considerably better than mine. Perhaps if I'm one of them, they will also choose me.)”

Another experience from this matter was shared by Hazeline Soriano. A 24-year-old aspiring English teacher from Bulacan State University-Sarmiento Campus. She said that she and her friends started to find a job to support their studies, especially in the pandemic era where a lot of people have experienced hardships on an everyday basis, such as necessities, money, and resources. “Actually, I'm with my friends at that moment. We tried to apply because someone told us that the company does not require fluency (in English). So we were surprised when we heard our co-applicants speaking fluently (in English). So, yes. Until now, remembering that made me feel uneasy. The reality that I am not very good at English hits me hard.” She also shares that she felt intimidated and insecure at that time. “Yes. Aside from insecurity, I felt intimidated. Because the interviewer appears to be thinking, what the hell am I doing in that room?” She ended her statement saying, “If jobs just let people with necessary skills take a position in their company than people speaking English fluently, maybe we can have a lot of employees now and unemployment will not rise again.”

Maybe this cannot happen if we don't use English as the basis for how we look at different people. Maybe the unemployment rate in the Philippines due to English proficiency will not rise as it is used as a standard for accepting an employee, and maybe this concern will not make other people doubt and feel embarrassed about themselves. We often have a better sight and view of the universal language, but we don't see how it can affect other people in a negative way. Those people who are trying their best to live in a society where they have to deal with double standards. These people only wanted to survive on an everyday basis. We can say that they can just learn English and try to make an effort for them to be chosen for the jobs they need; they can only wish. In a country like the Philippines, learning is much more expensive than the salary you will get after graduating. But money is the king. It is a dream. It dominates everyone. In a society where poverty and hunger are dominant, we cannot blame the Filipinos for finding a job, even though they know for themselves that jobs require an English-speaking worker. And this is the reality: if we are not one of them, they will not choose us.

REFERENCES & SOURCES:

SWS: 47% of Filipinos ‘competent’ with English language | Philippine News Agency (pna.gov.ph)

Arcandi, J. L., & Grin, F. (2013). Language in economic development: Is English special and is linguistics fragmentation bad? In E. Erling & P. Seargeant (Eds.), English and development: Policy, pedagogy and globalization (pp. 243–266). Bristol, UK: Multilingual Matters.

Burton, L. A. (2013). Mother tongue-based multilingual education in the Philippines: Studying top-down policy implementation from the bottom up [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, U.S.A.

Chavez, A. (2014, January 10). What Asia can learn from Philippines about English education. Huffington Post.

Cabigon, M. (2015). State of English in the Philippines: Should We Be Concerned? British Council.

#englishproficiency #unemploymentrate #philippines #filipinoworkers #english #articles #englisharticle #job

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